A Dog's Purpose

Today we said goodbye to the sweetest mutt God ever put on this earth, Annie Bice. We got Annie from the Animal Shelter right before Christmas in 1997, my junior year of high school.

When we went to pick out a puppy, this little terrier mix (mixed with who in the world knows - I still think part wolf) was curled up beside a mama Dalmatian and her puppies. She was like little Orphan Annie, so she essentially named herself. Bless her heart.

My mom and dad called me "Sister" to her and she knew just who I was. She was a good girl. She was a such sweet girl and even in her older days she'd get so excited when "Sister" came into town for a visit. We had a special bond.

I think Annie helped my parents get through the empty nest syndrome when I started college, even though I was still in the same city, just not living at home. And then again when I moved away from Hattiesburg for my first job out of college and never came back. Maybe that was her purpose. If anyone has read "A Dog's Purpose" you know what I mean. She lived a good, long life and spent almost 14 years as the Bice family dog.

Please say a little prayer for my mom and dad. They're the ones who will miss her the most. Hopefully they find some peace soon. God bless sweet Annie Banannie. I'm sure she's fetching squeaky toys and tennis balls in heaven already.

Humbled

This has been a pretty intense week for my family. I've always been a believer in the power of prayer, but I've come as close to witnessing a true miracle this week as I believe I ever will...

My grandmother in Alabama has had her ups and downs in regards to her health recently. Last Tuesday she had surgery for an abdominal aortic aneurysm. (Forgive me if I get my medical terminology wrong, but I'll try my best.)

The aneurysm had grown to a dangerously large size and posed a pretty serious risk of hemorrhaging. The surgeon felt certain he could put in a stent endoscopically so that she wouldn't have to undergo major surgery, but there was a blockage issue once they started the surgery and they had to actually open her abdomen and put in the stent that way. This was obviously a much more complicated procedure than originally planned and not ideal for an 88-year-old.

We knew it would take a couple of days for her to wake up after the surgery because of all the pain medication. But as of Sunday, five days after the surgery, she still had not woken up and had been put back on a ventilator because she wasn't breathing on her own. It was not looking good at all. I had a heart-to-heart with my parents and was preparing for the worst.

On Monday they did a CT scan to check the level of brain activity and to see if there was any brain damage from a possible stroke. Results came back clear. Her vital signs were still strong. She just was not waking up or breathing on her own. Although the doctor didn't classify it as such, it was like she was in a medically-induced coma.

The surgeon still felt like she would come out of this "fog" and to improve her chances, although still a long shot, he wanted to do a tracheotomy so that they could remove the ventilator tube from her throat. He said that was putting a lot of stress on her system after that extended period of time and was painful.

He did the tracheotomy Tuesday afternoon and by Wednesday morning she had opened her eyes and was squeezing hands on command. I cannot tell you how humbled we all were at this recovery. And by yesterday afternoon she was trying to talk and move her hands and feet.

She obviously has an incredibly daunting recovery in front of her and a loooong way to go before she's even close to being as strong as she was before the surgery. But I'll tell you one thing, if anybody can do it, she can. She is THE most strong-willed person I know, and she just wasn't ready to be done with this world yet.

The doctors and nurses have rallied around her because of this miraculous turnaround. She was the underdog to say the least. I am pretty sure she walked "into the light" and then something or someone, maybe my Grandpa, told her it wasn't her time just yet. I can't wait until she's able to speak and tell us where she's been the past week. She is just such an amazing, determined spirit, and I'm beyond grateful that I get to see her again.

I embrace my inner nerd...

And I admit that I'm very sad it's time for Harry's adventures to come to an end on screen. He, Hermoine and Ron have been a part of my life for nearly 10 years now, ever since I met Derek.

I remember the night when we first started dating that he told me he was a huge Harry Potter fan. I laughed at him because I thought he was kidding. But little did I know HOW GREAT the books actually were. I think J.K. Rowling is a genius, and I absolutely respect her imagination and perseverance in writing these books. It's just mind-blowing to me.

Derek and I used to take the day off work years ago to go watch the movies on the day they came out. Fun memories... we're not midnight premiere-goers or even Friday movie-goers anymore, but you better believe we will be there will bells on at some point this weekend to say goodbye to this trio of wizards.

So Harry, this weekend I dedicate many a magical song to you. If I was a DJ I would be playing a montage right now... Every little thing you do is magic. Do you believe in magic? I've got the magic in me. Abracadabra.

It's been a fun ride.

Just call me Annie Oakley...

I can now officially check "SHOOT A GUN" off my bucket list. Would you believe that in all my 30 years on this earth I have never even seen a gun up close, much less held one, and by no means shot one? And yes, I'm a Mississippi girl.

Well, Saturday that changed. Derek and I went to the gun range in Clinton with Katherine and Paul, and after a short safety lesson from Paul, I shot a gun for the first time. Once I got the hang of it, I absolutely loved it! It was quite the rush, and not that I'm bragging, but I was a decent shot, too. Who knows? Maybe it's a hidden talent. :)

Paul had a few different hand guns for us to try, and the one I liked the best was a .22 revolver. It had a long, skinny barrel, which made me feel kind of like I was in the Wild West preparing for a duel. It looked kind of like this...

Derek got a video of it, but I can't figure out how to upload it from his phone, so you may be out of luck on video evidence that I'm telling the truth. But it was fun, and definitely a different kind of way to spend a Saturday afternoon!

So thank you, Kat and Paul, for a fun afternoon. There's always a sense of satisfaction when you check something off your bucket list, and that satisfaction is hard to beat when you keep hitting the bullseye on the target. Now, maybe it's time I move on to rifles and shotguns... Ha!

July 4th: Buffalo River/Memphis

No matter how much wishing and hoping I did, our big Eagle Lake July 4th Celebration just wasn't really happening this year. So, since this is one of my favorite weekends of the whole year, I refused to let us sit at home desperately searching for something fun to do. We decided to hit the road to Memphis for the long weekend and have some fun with our friends Dave and Rachel.

We left Jackson mid-morning Friday and then hit Beale Street for the afternoon with Dave. We just walked around, had a few cold drinks to celebrate the fact that it was Friday AND a long holiday weekend, and listened to some good blues on the patio of Silky's.

Once we left downtown it was back out to Dave's house in East Memphis, then we picked up Rachel and headed to dinner at The Germantown Commissary for some classic Memphis BBQ. SO GOOD!!

We woke up bright and early Saturday and packed up the car (we looked like the Beverly Hillbillies) and hit the road to Buffalo River in Flatwoods, Tenn., outside of Nashville. About two and a half hours later, we were ready to set up our campsite (yes, I camped in a tent - stop laughing) and put our canoes in the water.


Derek and I had never canoed together before. He's never been at all, and while I've been canoeing, it was many many years ago, and I'm pretty sure I sat in the middle and didn't do any paddling. This was much different. Ha! We tipped over in the first 90 seconds. It was a cold wake-up call, but that's all it took to get our butts in gear and get a paddling system going. We were river rock stars after the first two minutes! Ha!

The trip was about eight miles total, and we stopped a lot to swim or walk up to a waterfall or for the guys to do some cliff-jumping. Here's Derek mid-jump. And this wasn't even the highest one - my waterproof camera ran out of film before we got to the big jump. Crazy.

We made it back to the campsite in about seven hours, only flipping over once more towards the very end. We did fine until the last mile or so when it was still water and you couldn't stop paddling. We were exhausted. I don't think I've used some of these muscles in my whole life. Ouch. All in all, I give us an A for our first time canoeing! It was so much fun, and we made a pretty good team. I only have a few pretty bruises to keep as souvenirs. :)

Camping was a blast, too. It was a cool 67 degrees outside, which made sleeping in a tent actually enjoyable. Bugs weren't an issue, the fire burned all night, our cheddar brats we made over the fire were delicious, as were the s'mores. A total success and a great way to celebrate the beauty of this great country!!

We woke up with the sunshine Sunday morning and packed up. Sunday afternoon we relaxed our super sore muscles in Rachel's apartment pool for a while before going downtown for a quick bite to eat and to watch the fireworks.

We got a special treat after the fireworks when Dave and his music buddies decided to fit in a little practice jam session. They are SO GOOD! We love hearing Dave play the guitar, usually "Dave Unplugged" on our back deck or at the lake. This was "Dave Plugged In" with his electric guitar, another electric guitar AND some drums. Amazing. Not to mention their practice area is in a super cool warehouse downtown. I felt very "urban." Ha!

So if you're itching for some good live music, go check out Double Daves next time they play around Memphis. You can thank me later. Or you could just check out this snip-it of them playing my favorite song, Wagon Wheel by Old Crow. :)

We had such a great weekend! It was the perfect little road trip. And if I couldn't be at Eagle Lake enjoying America's birthday, this was the best way to spend it. Happy Birthday, America!